A job, a job

My kingdom for a job.

Well, as the job offers roll in, in a slow but leviathan like pace, I have to decide who I wish to work for. When one reads items like this or that about NOVA, one wonders if it is such a good start? Should I take the first cab off the rank, or wait for the next one, which may or may not arrive. NOVA is the biggest school, and is often equated with McDonalds for it’s format and teaching style. They are also, as far as I know, losing money hand over fist because of their investment in new technology. (Like I haven’t seen that happen before.) Classes are conversation only, at 45 minutes and usually with 1 to 3 students, and some NOVA Kids (up to 12 yearolds.) with maybe 1 or 2 a day lessons a day.

ECC required a grammar test, which I think I passed because they haven’t told me that I didn’t. They seemed to have the best working conditions, and the best interview peocess. Good pay (actually everyone pays the minimum now, but that’s still quite a lot) and all public holidays and Sundays off, training in Osaka or Tokyo. Some travel is required around Kyushu, which seems okay, and to the locations in Fukuoka (but one is 5 minutes walk from where I live – and travel is reimbursed.) These seem to be a more structured class style, (I don’t know how long though) with a better textbook than NOVA. They also have ECC Kids, which is up to 12 yearolds as well. I’m not sure how many kids classes I’d have to do.

Linguaphone, which I also quite liked, have only one office in Tenjin (the trendy part of Fukuoka.) But their timetable is quite busy (with 1.5 hours teaching at a time, with 30 minutes preparation,) and they don’t have the public holidays off. Slightly longer working hours (but only 16.5 hours face to face with students) and working on Sundays 10AM to 6PM, which can be a bummer. But, they don’t do a kids lesson at all.

Too many times in the past I’ve taken the first job that came along, or the job that I thought was the best, or was told the best. Now I have to go through all that again. It seems the one I really want to work for will be the one I hear from last. Not the best way to go about it but I’m just going to have to try stalling tactics really.